THUMBS UP to Canada Post for encouraging all of us to reach out to friends and families with their free, postage-paid postcard campaign.
Source: #writeherewritenow
THUMBS DOWN to Facebook’s moderating process for preventing a family’s fundraising campaign. The Vernon, BC, family has been trying to raise $150,000 for a new wheelchair van through a GoFundMe campaign, but when they tried to promote the campaign through their Facebook page, Facebook flagged it as suspicious and wouldn’t allow them to share it. “It makes me wonder about the quality of their algorithms if Facebook can’t distinguish between racist, misogynistic and discriminatory content and quality content from humans who are working to support other humans,” says the family. Source:
thestar.com
THUMBS UP to people in Halifax for wrapping lamp poles with coats, scarves and mittens for people in need. Each item had a tag that read “I am not lost! If you are stuck out in the cold, please take me to keep warm!”
Source: Meanwhile in Canada
THUMBS DOWN to politicians travelling during the pandemic. An Alberta mother says she’s outraged by various politicians and staff who decided to travel abroad over the holidays, while a dream trip to Hawaii for her terminally ill son had to be postponed.
Source: huffingtonpost.ca
THUMBS UP to Zoom for pledging to provide closed captioning for all free users. While Zoom’s latest move is a success, the platform doesn’t plan to roll out this feature until later this fall, a time when the pandemic circumstances might be changed and video conferencing might not be as needed. However, for those with hearing loss and other people who need the captioning for accessibility reasons, Zoom has created a Google form where they can submit requests. Applicants will be able to receive the closed captions immediately.
zoom.us
THUMBS DOWN to Air Canada who paid social media influencers to promote international travel during the pandemic. The Globe and Mail reported on social media from some top bloggers and influencers showing these people taking international vacations “in partnership with Air Canada Vacations.” WestJet also promoted international travel, setting up a program making it easier for Canadians travelling to Hawaii to get tested upon arrival. Hawaii welcomed 2,534 travellers from Calgary and 1,575 travellers from Vancouver over t he Christmas holidays.
Source: Govt of Hawaii/Globe and Mail
THUMBS UP to Mike Hay, a contractor from Nanaimo, B.C. and his wife who have been making 10 “hope stoves” a night with donated wax, wicks and paint cans. Their portable heaters burn for about 12 hours and help people stay warm and heat up food. They’ve paired up with thrift shops as drop-off points and posted a video teaching others how to make the stoves.
Source: iHeartRadio
THUMBS UP to the community fridges that have popped up across Canada. An estimated 80 to 100 people are daily users of Calgary Community Fridge, since CERB ended. The Calgary fridge is emptied at least five times a day claims co-founder Alice Lam.
Source: Foodism